How well rested are you? Many people seem to suffer from
tiredness – not just a bad night or two, but a real deep down
weariness. Have you ever felt like that?

Imagine you held a stone in your hand(or find a real one). Let
this represent the burdens you carry. What are those
burdens Imagine telling God about them. What does he say to you?

The most obvious importance of having a regular Sabbath break is so
that we can rest. But true rest is not just about stopping work. Often
the things that wear us out are far deeper than simple busyness. We are
tired because we are trying to earn approval from others or from God
and because we are afraid of what will happen if we don’t come up
to scratch.

Read:Deuteronomy 5.12-15
The Israelites are instructed to keep the Sabbath, and to let the rest
of their families, their animals and the foreigners who work in their
midst keep it too. They are reminded that they were once slaves –
having no rest and no freedom, but that God rescued them.

Imagine what it is like to be a slave. You have no rights,
no contract, no choice, and you probably live in fear. You depend for
your life on keeping the goodwill of your owner. You have to work, or
you will be punished.

Christian faith is based on the idea of Grace; God’s
unmerited love. We do not have to earn his approval or his love because
it is ours already. Just as a loving parent cannot stop loving their
children, God will not stop loving us. Is this your understanding of
God, or do you feel you have to do or be certain things to make him
happy? Are you a slave or a free person?

If you overwork, ask yourself why? What are the “slave-drivers” in your life?

Read:I Kings 19.4-8
Elijah has just had a contest with the prophets of Baal on Mount
Carmel. He (and his God) have triumphed, but Queen Jezebel has
threatened his life. Exhausted and deflated he runs into the desert.

How does this passage show God caring for him?

How do you treat yourself when you are tired?

To do:

Think of one way in which you could change your life to make it more restful.
Think of one way in which you could make someone else’s life more restful.